Tire regrooving device



NOV- 11, 941 c. A. wATKlNs TIRE REGROOVING DEVICE Filed Dec. 30, 1939 2Sheets-Sheet 'l 0;- A ITam/Ey Nov. l1, 1941.

C. A. WATKINS TIRE REGROOVING DEVICE Filed Dc. so, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR.

A TTORNE Y.

lor removingthe wheel fromthe car( Patented Nov. l11, 1941 ApplicationDecember 30, 1939, Serial No.' :311,914

v Y 6 Claims. (Cl..82l,4)

This invention relates to new and useful irri-i provenients in tireregrooving machines and relates more particularly to an improved deviceof this general character which is adapted -to quickly and easilyfcut anew groove or plurality of groovesin a tire after the original grooveshave gbeen completely -or partially obliterated by wear, the operationbeing carriedon without removing the Vtire from the wheel uponk which itis carried Devices Aof vthis general vcharacter -have used, but they4have been `unsatisfactory for the reason lthat in vmost instances arelatively high order of skill was required to operate them inan-effective-manner andthe results were far from cured i'to suchfrontaterminals.

uniform. lt isone of )the principal-objects of the f present inventionto .provide an vimproved device of this type-wherein the'wheel carryingth'e tire may lbe easily and quickly moved into position for theoperation of 4regrooving the tire Vand wherein theoperation itselfcaribe accomplished in a minute or thereabout's, thereby greatlyreducing 4the time -inrwhich the vehicle is out of commission. 'f

VAnotl'ier objectV of the" invention is the provision of an improvedapparatus wherein the cutting element'adapts itself for cutting groovesin tires of varying sizes without adjustment of i parts.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a device of thischaracter 'wherein the' cutting element cuts a groove of predetermineddepth regardless of the irregularities in the surface of the tire.

A still further object of the invention is to xprovide a device havingcutting members whichbe readily sharpened' or changed lwhen broken andwhich may be otherwise varied to iit the-needs of the user. i '4 Afurther object of the `invention is the provision in a device of thistype of means for rmly supporting the side walls of the ftire as thesame rotates `during the groove cutting. i'

`In vthe drawings: c Fig.. l is a top planview ofthe presently'preferredembodiment of rthe;invention; r

`Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof; Fig. 3 is a broken longitudinal,vertical `section tekenthrough substantiallythe center ofrthe device;

Fig. 5 is atransverse vertical section :taken on line '5 5 .of Fig. 1

4. .is a'transverse vertical section `taken on lined-6 of Fig. l; f f

'partd as will be described hereinafter.

f l0* been a "taken through one of the cutting .elements and -thesupporttherefor;

yFigi? iis "a broken, transverse section takenV on 'The presentembodiment is mounted on a frame lcomprising a pair of spacedlongitudinalframe members i0 a-ndil ,1| Awhich aredesirably formed fromangle irons, the=upper or horizontal surfaces i2 v'thereof supportingvarious portions of the apparatus.l These longitudinal frame members f'ID and' kHga're held in their 'spaced relation at their'fforwarldendsby means of a flat, elongated bar llfwhich is welded or otherwisesuitably se- I The frame members are fur'thersecured 'in their spacedposition "by means of ay substantially .U-.shaped member r.lian/ing anelongatedhorizontal portion l5 A(Iig. 31) and a pair ofspaced upstandingjournalportions I6 whichy support a transverse shaft l1,

which provides a'isupport 'forthe cuttingelementshereinaffterA-described.

4 'Iliieftirel of the wheel to `'be retreaded is sup- /por'tedonaipairof spaced rotatable rollers '2Q i and' 12|, eachl of such 'rollers being:formed with terminal shaft portions 22 and 22' which are journalled in`bearing members 24 which are secured-tothefh'orizontal portions 7|'2 of`frame mem- Ybers land -I lq jrPhe `wheel carrying the tire to -beregrooved isrotated by means of these rollers 2d land 2l to' whichrotativemovenrientl isv im- .AC cordinglyjitjis' desired `that thesurfaces of the rollers 2-0 and'Zl'lbe rendered non-smooth in anysuitable 'fashionl vInfthe form shown, .the surlfaces "of these "rollersare provided with a plurality `of spaced apertures 26 'in which shortpins. 21a/riel secured (see Fig.E 3'). In order lto enable the car tobeI easily fdriven onto the rollers `20 and 2|, a short runway "28having opposed side walls 29 lvi's'provided, the `rearward end of such'runway having a transverse, downwardly dependingjiiangeportionf!) whichlis supported onthe cross-piece ULy This runway may, of course, beremoved when' thedevice-is not in use.

In somfeinstanoes it may be desired to have ltheopposite wheel ofthec'ar on substantially the same elevation as the wheel to be regroovedand n in order to provide av support for suchV opposite V*"w'heeLfa'suitable platform v32 .of proper height is formed;l suchvplatform.'having an inclined for- -fwa-rd portion 33 uplwhich suchopposite wheel iin any'l vsuitab'lemanner 'and no detailsof such"construction are herein illustrated. In orderto Fig. 6 is lan enlarged,broken,:horizontal-section 55T may travel. This platform lmay beconstructed iprovide proper'rspacing of this platform relative 2f `v I2,262,596

to frame members` I and a pair of spaced' rods 35 carried by suchplatform pass through fsuitable apertures (no t shown) in frame memberl0 (Fig. 1).

A motor 31 is mounted on a cross bar 38, the terminals 39 of which aresecured tothe rearward `portion of frame members I0 and Il, as shown inFig. 4. Ihe shaft K 4| of this motor carries a worm drive 42 whichengages a worm gear 43 carried on a longitudinally disposed shaft 44.`The worm drive 42 is lubricated by oil (not shown) contained in alubrication box 45. This shaft 44 is supported for rotative movement bymeans of journal member 46 and carries at its opposite 'end a nwormdrive 48 whichengages a worm gear 49 carried by shaft 22. Thearrangement of the worm' drives 42 and 48 is such as to cause 'the'shaft 23 to d l l rotate much more slowly than shaft 4| driven by themotor, and in the arrangement shown, the

roller driven by-shaft 22' is of such .size as to rotate sufficientlyrapidly to-turnthe wheel carrying the tire approximately one revolutionper minuta The opposite terminal shaft portions 22 on rollers 20 and 2|,respectively, are provided with belt pulleys 5| .and 52, and a belt 53extendying' betweensuch pulleys, thereby imparting similar rotativemovement to Adrum 2|.

The following means are provided for guiding the side wallsof the tireduring rotative movement thereof. Shafts 54 and 55 pivotally supportedin journals 56 mounted on the under side of horizontal portions |2offrames l0, are provided with off -set substantially U-shaped portions`59. Shaft 54 is formed with an elongated crank portion 60 and shaft 55is provided with an elongated crankA portion 6|, which crankv portionsvpass upwardly through apertures 62 and 63, re-

spectively, in housing member. 65.

The upper or horizontal surface 61 of housing 65 supportsasubstantiallylU-shaped member 68 having vertical portions 69 and 10.Each of the latter portions are providedv with elongatedA curved slotsl1| (Fig. 4l and the ycrank portions a substantially U-shaped forwardend portion 83, the transverse portion 89A thereof being rounded andsharpened on its upper edge. This sharpening is preferably done on theexterior of the cutter only, as shown at 9U (Fig. 7). Y

At its rear end the rod 84 carries a block 92, a set screw 93 passingtherethrough and also residing in a longitudinal slot A94 in the' uppersurface of `the tube. Thus. it will be apparent that longitudinaladjustment of the cutter may be obtained by loosening set screw y93 andmoving rod 84. l

When the tire to be regrooved is moved into position on the rollers 20and 2|, it is desirable Ato ,lower the cutters to the position shown inlFig.k 2 and when the tire is rotating during the regrooving. operation,the cutter mustyieldingly engage lthe tire; To accomplish the latterresult, a relatively strong compression spring ||l| nected, at one endthereof, ywith offset portion 99 60 and 6| of shafts 54and 55,respectively, are

secured immovable in their desiredV position by means of bolts 13carried in such slots, `such bolts passing through apertures (not shown)in the crank portions. Wing nuts 1-4 carried at the oppositeV ends ofbolts 13 `may be tightened when the cranks are properly positioned.

Thus -it will be apparent that after tire `-is in place on the rollers.20 and 2|, the cranks 60 and 6| are moved in opposite directions to apoint lwherein U-shaped portions 59, engage-.the side walls' of thevtires sufficiently to prevent lateral movey ment thereofduringrotation, and vstill not' so tightly as to prevent free rotationthereof. Wing Vnuts 1.4 are now tightened.

= 'Casing 65 is formed with a forward extension 15 on one sidethereofAwhich houses the vforward end Vof vshaft 44 'and its associated gears.The casing is further provided with a hinged cover 1| to permit. accessto the inside thereof.

The number of grooves to be cut-is amatter of The tubefisprovided withan offset portion 82 at its forward end and a control rod 84 is mount-.'ediwithin the tube. YAYmounted on the forwardA end of this rod by 4means of a pin86 (Fig. 6) vsuch cutter being*- They cutting member 85vis preferably made from iiat sheet metal and having and at its oppositeend it is connectedA with a ring portion |04`on tube extension 82 beyondshaft I1. A crank portion 96 is formed at one end of shaft 98 and whenthispOrtion is horizontal as shown in Fig. 2, the offset portion 99 isvertical,

vthus releasing the tension in spring lill and in this position thereissuicient tension in spring |03 to maintain forward portion 82 of tube80 in'horizontal position andthe opposite end elevated. After the tireto b e regrooved is placed uponthe rollers 29 and 2|, however, crank 96yis drawn upwardly to the position shown in broken lines in Fig. 3, inwhich position spring |0| is under tension, thus forcing the cutter intoyieldy.ing engagement with thel tire.

. block. f

venting lateralmovement rof the tire, or if de- It will be apparent thatmany changes may .be made herein without departing from the spirit ofthev invention.'V For; instance, other tire sideV wall engaging meansmay be provided for presired free lateral movement of the cutters may beprovided andmeans engaging the side walls of the tire cause the cutterto follow lateral movement of the tire. Also, means other than the tube89 may be provided for supporting the cutters. l

What I claim is: a

' 1. .A tire regrooving device comprising a frame means, means on theframe for supporting a tire and imparting rotation thereto, such meanscomprising a' plurality oflspaced rollers provided with a non-smoothouter surface and means comprisring a prime mover for turning suchrollers, means of eachcutter comprising a support beyond which thecutter projects, the cutter being adjustable relativeto the support.

2. A tire regrooving device comprising a frame means, means on the framefor supporting a tire and imparting rotation thereto, such meanscomprising a plurality of spaced rollers provided with a non-smoothouter surface and means comprising a prime mover for turning suchrollers, means for holding the tire against lateral movement duringrotation comprising an elongated shaft on each side of the frame member,each shaft having a substantially U-shaped offset portion adapted toengage the side Walls of the tire and means for retaining said offsetportion in such engagement, a plurality of spaced cutters having cuttingedges lying on a plane substantially radially disposed relative to thetire, means for urging said cutters against the tire and means forcontrolling the depth of the out of each cutter comprising a supportfrom which the cutter projects, the cutter being adjustable relative tothe support.

3. A tire regrocving device comprising a substantially rectangular framemember, a pair of spaced rollers mounted transversely of said framemembers and adapted to receive a tire thereon and impart rotativemovement thereto, and a plurality of cutting elements adapted toyieldingly engage the tread portion of the tire during rotation thereof,each of such elements comprising an elongated tube, a pivoted supportfor the tube, a longitudinally movable cutting member positioned at theforward end of said tube and projecting therefrom, and means foradjusting the position of the cutter relative to the tube and a springassociated with the rear end of the tube adapted to urge the cutter andits support against the tire.

4. A tire regrooving device comprising a frame, a pair of spaced rollersmounted transversely of said frame and adapted to receive a tire thereonand impart rotative movement thereto, a pair of spaced, adjustable tireengaging members mounted on the frame and adapted to firmly engage theside walls of the tire during rotative movement thereof, a plurality ofpivotally mounted cutters adapted to yieldingly engage the tread portionof the tire during rotation thereof, and a support for each cuttercomprising an elongated tube from which the cutter projects apredetermined distance depending upon the depth of the cut.

5. A tire regrooving device comprising a frame member, a pair of spacednon-smooth rollers mounted transversely of said frame member and adaptedto receive a tire thereon and impart rotative movement thereto, meansfor imparting rotative movement to the rollers comprising a prime mover,a pair of spaced pivotally mounted tire engaging members on the frameand adapted to firmly engage the side walls of the tire during rotativemovement thereof, and a plurality of pivotally mounted cutting elementsadapted to yieldingly engage the tread portion of the tire duringrotation thereof, each of such elements comprising an elongated tube, alongitudinally movable substantially U-shaped cutter in the forward endof said tube and extending therefrom and means within the tube foradjusting the position of the cutter relative to the tube, and means forurging the cutter and its support against the tire.

6. A tire regrooving device comprisingfa substantially rectangular framemember, a pair of spaced rollers mounted transversely of said framemember and adapted to receive a tire thereon and impart rotativemovement thereto, means for imparting rotative movement to the rollerscomprising a motor mounted at one end of the frame and gearingconnecting the motor with the rollers, a pair of spaced longitudinallydisposed tire engaging members mounted on the frame and adapted tofirmly engage the side walls of the tire during rotative movementthereof, and a plurality of pivotally mounted cutting elements adaptedto yieldingly engage the tread portion of the tire during rotationthereof, each of such elements comprising an elongated tube, alongitudinally movable cutting member positioned at the forward end ofsaid tube and a control rod within the tube and secured to the cutter atits forward end, means for adjusting the position of the rod relative tothe tube and a spring associated with the rear end of the tube adaptedto urge the cutter and its support against the tire.

CLARENCE A. WATKINS.

